Mets notes: Juan Lagares progressing

Injured center fielder Juan Lagares (hamstring) has played in two extended spring training games, going 2-for-7 with a run and two doubles. The hope is for him to play with Class AAA Las Vegas next week, manager Terry Collins said.

Lagares is eligible to come off the disabled list Wednesday.

Collins did not have a timetable for Lagares’ return, but he mentioned him possibly playing for Las Vegas while the Mets play their four-game series in Colorado beginning Thursday. If that plan holds up, Lagares would not return on the earliest eligible date.

He arguably was the Mets’ best hitter before getting injured, batting .314 with seven RBI.

Shifting the outfield

Curtis Granderson made his first start of the season in center field, as Chris Young was not in the starting lineup due to an illness, but did pinch-hit. Granderson last started in center last season with the Yankees. Bobby Abreu started in right and crushed the ball for a two-run homer in the first inning.

A Wright thing

Third baseman David Wright honored police officers James Li and Randy Chow, and FDNY EMTs Khadijah Hall and Shaun Alexander before the game as part of his "The Wright Thing" initiative. Li was shot once in each leg in February while chasing a suspect in Brooklyn, and Hall and Alexander assisted him after the shooting.

The four met with Wright before the game and sat in the VIP seats. Wright posed for pictures with their families and friends, too.

Wright started "The Wright Thing" last year, honoring volunteers who helped out during Superstorm Sandy. Honoring policemen and policewomen has a special meaning for Wright, as his father, Rhon, served in the Norfolk Police Department for 30 years.

"We try to put quite a bit of time and energy into choosing the recipients," Wright said.